


Relationship Problems

by 18lzytwner



Series: LazyTown First Series [14]
Category: LazyTown
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-01-18
Updated: 2006-01-18
Packaged: 2019-06-24 16:20:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 16
Words: 9,936
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15634311
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/18lzytwner/pseuds/18lzytwner
Summary: All the relationships in LazyTown seem to be falling apart. Is there a way to save them or will hearts be broken?As a heads up - Stephanie is a little older and Sportacus is a little younger.





	1. Chapter 1

**August 31, 2007**

          Stephanie felt Sportacus creep into bed.  She looked at the alarm clock on the dresser on the other side of the room.  It had been three hours since his crystal went off.  Rolling over, she surprised the above average hero.  Sportacus remained silent as Stephanie spoke. 

          “Where have you been?”  She asked. 

          “I was saving someone.”  He answered.

          “For three hours?”  Stephanie said skeptically.  Her husband didn’t respond.

          “You’ve been spending less and less time at home.  I’m beginning to think that Joshua doesn’t even remember what you look like.  What is going on?”  She questioned.  Again Sportacus didn’t answer.  Instead he got out of bed.

          “Where are you going?”  His wife asked.

          “To get some sleep.”  Sportacus said flatly.  With that the above average hero left the room.  Stephanie got up to follow him.

          “You can’t leave.  We need to talk.  Is it something I’ve done or something I’ve said?”  Please help me understand.”  She begged.  The above average hero turned around.  He had a look on his face. 

          “No, it hasn’t been something you’ve said or did.  I was gone a long time tonight because the Mayor wanted some help after I saved some people from being stuck in the woods all night.  He’s been asking me to help him a lot lately.”  Sportacus answered.

          “Why couldn’t you just tell me that?  Why did you have to get all snippy with me?”  Stephanie asked.

          “I haven’t been getting a lot of sleep and it seems like every time I poke my head out of this apartment someone wants me to do something.  I’ve been neglecting you and Joshua.  I’m sorry.”  Her husband explained. 

          “Well we need to tell Uncle Milford to do his own thing then.”  Stephanie said.

          “Easier said then done, I’m afraid.  He and Bessie aren’t talking.  So he’s been spending more time at Town Hall and working on the upcoming election.”  Sportacus told her.

          “Oh boy, you think we can help them?”  Stephanie asked.

          “Yes but not if I don’t get any sleep.  Or any time to spend with my wife and son.”  Her husband said firmly.  Stephanie nodded and took his hand.  The two walked back down to their bedroom.  Crawling back into bed, the couple snuggled next to each other and fell asleep quickly.

          The next morning, Stephanie awoke first.  Leaving her husband to get some more sleep, she went to check on Joshua.  It was hard to believe the little guy would be celebrating his second birthday in exactly five months.  Where had the time gone? 

          In the past nine months life had been pretty good until summer started.  It seemed that ever since June, Sportacus was constantly saving someone or helping out her uncle.  Stephanie was actually getting aggravated with Uncle Milford for constantly asking her husband to do things.  The man had a family now.  Things weren’t as they had been before.  Change was hard for the Mayor to accept.                                                                                                                         

All this thinking had made Stephanie forget what she was doing.  Joshua was still sleeping so she crept out of the room.  Sitting on the couch, her thoughts went to Bessie and Uncle Milford.  Why weren’t the two talking?


	2. Chapter 2

On the other side of town a storm was brewing.  Not outside mind you but inside.  Trixie confronted Stingy.  The two had moved in together this past spring into a nice apartment but life hadn’t been as good as Trixie would have liked it.

          “Stingy you’re twenty-four for crying out loud!  You have to stop this obsession with MINE!”  His girlfriend yelled.

          “But it’s _MMIIIIIINE_!”  The young man rebutted.

          “You have a choice, Stingy.  It’s me or your stuff.  What is more important to you?”  Trixie laid down the ultimatum.  His answer didn’t come fast enough.

          “That’s it Stingy!  We’re through!”  Trixie shouted.  Tears began to stream down her face as she raced from their apartment.  Stingy stood there unsure if he should follow.

          Bessie woke up alone again.  Milford hadn’t come home again last night.  First he forgets their anniversary last week and now he doesn’t come home, claiming that the upcoming election is too important.  What election?  No one ever ran against Milford.  She was angry, hurt, and confused.  Why was he treating her this way?   

          Robbie got of bed and walked into the living room.  There he found Amanda sitting in his big fuzzy orange chair. 

          “Can I ask you something?”  She wondered.

          “Sure just let me take a shower.”  Robbie said putting the question off.

          “Ok.  After your shower we’ll talk.”  She agreed.  The ex-villain nodded and went down to the bathroom.

          About twenty minutes later, Robbie emerged cleaned and dressed for the day.  Amanda was still waiting for him in the chair.  However, Robbie blew right by his girlfriend and went for the cake sitting on the kitchen counter.  Amanda followed him into the kitchen.

          “I thought we were going to talk.  Lately it seems you’ve been ignoring me and everything we say to each other is very superficial.  Are we going around in circles or…”  the girl couldn’t bring the thought to her mouth.  Robbie almost choked on the cake when she paused.

          “We’ve been together almost four years and I want to know where we’re headed.”  Amanda spit out.

          “I don’t know.”  Robbie said without thinking.

          “Oh.”  Amanda said sounding a bit depressed.  She walked away from him.  Were they not in love anymore?  Was their relationship over?

          Stephanie, Sportacus, and Joshua were enjoying a quiet breakfast together.  The above average hero and his son were playing the poking game in between bites.  Stephanie smiled and noticed how good it felt to actually be eating a meal together.  Sportacus observed the look on his wife’s face and leaned over to her.

          “You know you’re pretty cute when you’re thinking.”  He smiled.

          “I’m just cute, huh?”  Stephanie teased.

          “Well most of the time you’re not cute.”  Sportacus laughed.

          “Oh really?”  She smiled.

          “Yeah, you’re usually pretty ugly.”  He taunted.  Joshua giggled as if he understood the joke.

          “Even my own son thinks I’m ugly!  Well take that!”  Stephanie said flinging her spoonful of oatmeal at her husband.  Sportacus ducked and it hit Joshua’s stomach.  The toddler laughed and picked up his Cheerios © and flung them at his mother.  They missed their intended target and hit Sportacus on the back of the head.  In turn the above average hero flung a piece of apple at Stephanie.  Soon it was an all out food fight in the kitchen. 

          Then their fun was ended when Sportacus’ crystal went off.  Looking into it he saw Bessie and the Mayor getting into an argument.

          “I have to go.  I’m sorry.”  He said.

          “But who is going to clean up this mess?”  Stephanie asked.  Before she could get an answer the above average hero had run down the hall.  After he changed into his blue uniform, Sportacus rushed back down the hall and out the door.   


	3. Chapter 3

Bessie had tried to talk to her husband but was getting nowhere.  They were now yelling at each other.

          “You forgot our anniversary and now you spend all this time down at the office!  We don’t see each other practically at all!  Why?”  Bessie shouted.

          “Maybe if you weren’t commanding me to do things all the time we’d be together!”  Mayor Meanswell retorted.

          “Asking you to wash the dishes is commanding you to do something?!”  She fired back.

          “No!  Fix the fence!  Mow the lawn!  Repaint the mailbox!  You’re my wife you should be helping me!”  Milford bellowed.

          “Help you do what?  Run an election campaign for an election that only has you running?!”  Bessie screamed.  At that moment before either one could say anything Sportacus burst into the room.

          “Enough!”  It was the above average hero shouting this time.  This stopped the arguing couple and they turned to face him.  Sportacus rarely raised his voice but they could tell that he meant business.

          “You stop ordering him around!”  He pointed at Bessie.

          “And you stop ignoring your wife!  Forget the election and make up for the missed anniversary!”  He pointed at Mayor Meanswell.  Both nodded.

          “Now I’m going home to enjoy the day with my wife and son.  If I have to come back here both of you are in serious trouble.  I hate to treat you like children but apparently that’s the only way you understand.”  Sportacus said angrily.  Just as fast as he’d come Sportacus disappeared.

          When the above average hero returned home, he found Amanda and Trixie there.  Both were obviously upset.  Pulling Stephanie away from them he asked what was going on.

          “Trixie and Stingy got into a huge fight this morning.  Apparently she told him to make a choice; his stuff or her.  Now Amanda asked Robbie where they’re relationship was headed and he told her he didn’t know.  I guess the two have still having problems from last summer.”  She explained quietly.

          “So what we do?”  Sportacus asked trying to be quiet but obviously upset.  “I finally get a chance to spend time with you and Joshua and now we have to deal with everyone else’s problems.” 

          “I know.  But I have an idea.  It’s a nice day out.  Why don’t you take Joshua to the playground?  I’ll handle these guys.”  Stephanie smiled. 

          “That’s still not spending time with the two of you.  All their stress is putting stress on us.”  Sportacus said.  His wife understood his frustration and whispered into his ear.  The above average hero’s face lit up.  Stephanie kissed him and then went back to her friends.                  

Sportacus went over to Joshua, who was playing in the playpen.  The little guy was having fun with his favorite stuffed animal, Ted E. Bear, and some Little Tikes © cars. 

          “Come on buddy.  Let’s go play on the swings.”  Sportacus said lifting him out of the playpen.  Joshua smiled and grabbed his dad’s fingers.  The above average hero smiled as he put his son into the stroller. 

          “Say goodbye to Mommy.  We’ll see her in a little while.”  Sportacus told him.

          “Bye Mommy.”  Joshua said. 

          “Bye baby.  Have fun with Daddy.”  Stephanie smiled.

          “Ok.”  Joshua agreed.  Then he blew a kiss to her.  Stephanie caught it and blew one back.  Amanda and Trixie were surprised by the whole thing.  After the two left Trixie asked,

          “Joshua can talk and blow kisses?” 

          “Oh yeah; he’s a fast learner.  Now we’re going to take care of you’re messes but first you’re going to help me clean up this mess.”  Stephanie said pointing to the food on the kitchen walls, table, cupboards, and appliances.

          “What the hell happened here?”  Amanda asked.

          “We had a little food fight this morning.  I must say I guess we enjoyed ourselves a little too much.”  Stephanie laughed. 

          “I guess so.  Well let’s clean this up.”  Trixie smiled.  The three got right to work. 


	4. Chapter 4

The walk to the playground was silent between father and son.  It was another gorgeous late summer day in LazyTown; warm, sunny, and without a cloud in the sky.  Joshua was fascinated by the butterflies. 

          In a few minutes they reached the apartment complex’s playground.  There were other kids playing, laughing, and running all around. 

          “Look Daddy!”  Joshua pointed to the swings.  Sportacus smiled and lifted his son out of the stroller.  Setting him down, the above average hero parked the stroller near the bike rack. 

          “Take my hand now.”  Sportacus told Joshua.  The little boy nodded and the two walked over to the swings.  Picking him up, the above average hero placed him inside on of the baby swings.  Then he crouched down to be at eye level with his son. 

          “You know you’re getting better at that.”  Sportacus smiled.

          “No fall!”  Joshua exclaimed.

          “That’s right you didn’t fall.”  His father said.  The smile faded from his face.  The fact of the matter was he had missed a lot of things his son was doing.  Back in June, his son had taken his first steps.  However, the above average hero had missed them because he was off saving people.  In the beginning of August, Joshua’s first word was ‘ma’.  His absence had been a big deal no matter how much Stephanie tried to cover it up.  That’s probably why she had said what she did yesterday. 

          “Daddy?”  Joshua seemed to sense that something wasn’t right.

          “You want a push don’t you?  Sorry buddy.”  Sportacus said as he broke from his reverie.  Joshua pointed to his father’s head, then his own, and then winked.  His father shook his head in amazement.  That was the second time his son had done that.  The first time had been almost a year ago when his father had returned from his time travels.  Then as if nothing had happened Joshua said,

          “Push Daddy!”  Sportacus did as son wanted and started to push.  It was the strangest thing but the above average hero swore that his son was somehow reading his mind.                 

Back at the apartment, the girls were almost done cleaning the food off everything.  Trixie’s dilemma, however, wasn’t getting along so easily.

          “As I see it, the only way to get Stingy to realize what is more important is to force him to find out what life is like without you.”  Stephanie said.

          “But how?  This town is too small for us not to bump into each other and we live together.”  Trixie wondered.  

          “Good question.  Well maybe the first step is to get your things and tell him you’re moving out.”  Stephanie suggested. 

          “Well I think that’s all of it.”  Amanda flung out there.

          “What?”  Trixie asked.

          “I think I got all of the stuff off the food-encrusted microwave.  By the way, who eats Raisin Bran ©?”  Amanda asked.

          “My husband; that and usually cut up fruit for breakfast.”  Stephanie smiled. 

          “If that stuff sticks to the appliances like this I can’t imagine what it does to his insides.”  Amanda joked. 

“ _Meanwhile_ back at the ranch, what do I do?”  Trixie asked trying to get everyone back on topic.

“I’ve got it!”  Stephanie suddenly shouted.

“Got what?”  Amanda asked.


	5. Chapter 5

Bessie and Milford said in silence.  They had been that way ever since Sportacus had busted into Milford’s office and yelled at them.  Neither one seemed able to get up enough gumption to talk.  Finally unable to stand the oppressive silence, (and true to her nature) Bessie said something first.

          “Milford, I’m sorry if you think I’m ordering you around.”  She sort of apologized.

          “ _Think?_   I _know_ you are.”  Mayor Meanswell said angrily.

          “And I _know_ you forgot our anniversary.  I also _know_ you’ve been ignoring me.”  Bessie retorted.  Again the couple and the room fell silent. 

          “What if you went away for a few days?”  Stephanie asked.

          “How does that solve anything?”  Trixie asked.

          “Maybe not actually go away.”  Amanda interjected.  Both the other girls gave her a look.

          “Tell Stingy that you’re going to leave LazyTown for awhile.  Tell him that you might not come back.  This would force him to either beg your forgiveness or let you know that he doesn’t care.”  Amanda finished her thought. 

          “You think that will work?”  Trixie asked.

          “I don’t see why not.  Besides do you really want to get further into your relationship, if when it comes down to it his possessions are more important than you?”  Stephanie asked.

          “No, I don’t.”  Trixie said. 

          “Ok then.  Go to Stingy.  Tell him you’ve only come back for some of your things and that you’re leaving LazyTown.”  Amanda told her.

          “All right; I hope this works.”  Trixie said putting on her sneakers.  “Thanks guys.  You’re the best friends a girl could ever want.” 

          “You’re welcome.  Group hug.”  Stephanie said.  The friends hugged and Trixie ran out the door.

          “God I hope that works.”  Amanda said after she left.

          “Me too.  Ok your turn.”  Stephanie said as she led her friend over to the couch.

          “How much are you charging?  I don’t know if I can afford to go here anymore.”  Amanda joked.

          “What do you mean?”  Stephanie cocked her head to the side.

          “Well how many times have I sat on your couch and spilled the beans to you?  You probably think I’m a huge mess.”  Amanda said.

          “Hey, everyone has their problems.  Besides what kind of friend would I be if I wasn’t here for you?”  Stephanie asked.

          “A lot happier one, I bet.  Anyway, Robbie has been ignoring me and our conversations have been superficial.  Nothing seems to have very much meaning anymore.  For a while after last summer, I thought we were back on track but something seems amiss again.  And then he tells me he doesn’t know where we’re headed.  After almost four years he has to have an inkling.”  Amanda spilled.

          “I think that maybe Sportacus should talk to him.  See what’s going on.  I mean maybe there is something he wants to say but just doesn’t know how; especially after you asked him where things were going.  Why don’t we go and find my husband and Joshua?  Then the four of us will go over to your place and the five of us could maybe get an early dinner in.  It’s already three in the afternoon.”  Stephanie suggested.

          “Maybe then Robbie will open up to Sportacus or even want to talk to him alone or something?”  Amanda asked.

          “My thoughts exactly.  Come on.  It’s a beautiful day and we’ve spent most of it inside.”  Stephanie said.  The two friends put on their sneakers and headed for the playground.  


	6. Chapter 6

Trixie knocked on the apartment door.  She waited for a few minutes and knocked again.  When no one answered she assumed that Stingy was out getting more things.  The upset girl was about to leave when the door opened.

          Neither one said a word to each other as they stood staring at each other.  Then briskly Trixie walked past Stingy and went to her room.  He didn’t stop her and just stood there. 

          Fifteen minutes later, Trixie came out carrying a suitcase.  Setting the piece of luggage down, she fully expected him to say something or maybe even stop her. 

          “I’m leaving LazyTown for a few days but I haven’t made up my mind whether or not I’m coming back.  Either way Stephanie and Amanda will come by to get my things.”  Trixie said flatly.  The look on Stingy’s face was one of sadness.

          “I don’t know how to say this.  I need you to see something.”  He said.  Confused, Trixie only nodded.  She followed him down the hall.  Stingy turned to the first closet where he kept all his things.  Silently he opened it and moved on.  Inside his room, Stingy opened the other closet.  Trixie’s mouth hung open.  Both closets had been stuffed full at one point but now both lay empty. 

          “The only thing that I deserved to call my own was you.  I made a huge mistake and I understand if you want to leave.”  He said.  Trixie wrapped her arms around him.  Stingy was surprised at her reaction and didn’t know what to do.

          “Stingy that’s all I needed to know.  I’m sorry we fought this morning.”  She said.

          “I’m sorry too.  Promise we won’t do it again?”  He asked.

          “I promise but there is two things we have to clear up first.”  Trixie said.

          “What’s that?”  Stingy inquired.

          “First, I’m not yours.  People aren’t property.  Second, where did all of your stuff go?”  She told him.

          “Sorry again.  You are going to have to help me with that.  Bad habit.  My possessions went to the Salvation Army and the LazyTown Mission.  They needed them more than I did.  All I need to be happy is you.”  Stingy smiled.  Trixie smiled back.  Then her boyfriend pulled her close and kissed her.

          Stephanie, Amanda, Sportacus, and Joshua were sitting outside waiting for Robbie.  The ex-villain had promised to be there shortly but that was about thirty minutes ago.  Finally, Stephanie suggested that her husband grab the grill and they would get dinner started. 

          Sportacus ran to his airship and climbed the ladder.  He rarely used the great dirigible anymore except for storage.  _It’s kind of too bad really.  I miss zooming around in it.  Maybe once Joshua is older I’ll use it again,_ the above average hero thought to himself.  Grabbing the hibachi out of the storage cubby, Sportacus also grabbed his temperature fork and some extra propane tanks.  After he put the smaller things in his backpack, he held the hibachi in one hand and climbed down the ladder with the other. 

          The girls were busy putting a salad together and getting out plates and silverware.  Joshua sat in his booster seat at the table and acted like he was in charge.

          “Thirsty.”  He said. 

          “You’re drink is right there.”  Amanda smiled.  Joshua stuck his arm out only a little way and pretended he couldn’t reach.

          “Can’t.”  He told her. 

          “Is you’re little arm broken?”  Stephanie asked.  The toddler nodded and his mother handed him his drink. 

          “I don’t know where he gets that from.”  She said to Amanda.

          “I’m sure that its just a game he plays like the pokey game.”  Her friend smiled.  There was a knock on the door. 

          “I hope he out grows both of them.  I don’t know how much more poking Sportacus can take.”  Stephanie said as she went to answer it. 

          “He can always use Robbie when your husband needs a break.”  Amanda offered.  Stephanie laughed and opened the door for her husband.


	7. Chapter 7

“Where is Robbie?”  Amanda asked as she looked at the clock for the thousandth time.  It was now close to four o’clock.  Stephanie and Sportacus had no answer to that question.

          “Maybe I should go look for him.”  Sportacus suggested. 

          “Let me call the house and find out if he’s still there.  If not then we’ll go looking for him.”  Amanda said.  She picked up the phone and dialed the number.  The phone rang and after the fifth ring someone picked up, however it wasn’t Robbie.

          “Hello?”  The Mayor answered.

          “Uncle Milford?”  Amanda asked completely confused. 

          “Hi, Amanda!  How’s it going?”  Milford wondered.

          “Is my boyfriend there?”  The girl said ignoring the Mayor’s question.

          “Yes he his.”  Came the reply.

          “Can I speak with him?”  Amanda asked starting to sound annoyed.  There was no answer and she was about to ask again when Robbie’s voice came over the line. 

          “Hello.”

          “Robbie, where have you been and why is the Mayor over at our house?”  She asked.

          “Put Sportacus on the line please.  I think he’s more equipped to handle this than I am.”  He said.  Amanda handed the phone over to the surprised above average hero.

          “Robbie?”  Sportacus asked.

          “I think you’d better get over here quick.  I have no idea what to do.”  The ex-villain told him.

          “Ok, I’ll come right over.  Should I come alone?”  Sportacus inquired.

          “That’s probably best.  Tell Amanda I’m sorry and I promise we’ll talk later.”  Robbie said.

          “I will.  Be right over.”  The above average hero said and then he hung up.

          “Amanda, Robbie says he’s sorry and that he promises that you guys will talk later.  Right now I have to go over there.  I don’t know how long I’ll be so you guys eat something ok?”  Sportacus told them. 

          “Ok.  What’s going on?”  Stephanie asked.

          “I don’t know but hopefully its nothing serious.”  Sportacus said.  Kissing his wife and son, the above average hero left.

          Arriving at Robbie’s, he didn’t bother to ring the buzzer since he was expected.  Lifting the lid off the tube, Sportacus jumped inside and slid down.  The above average hero landed on his feet and came face to face with Robbie.

          “I’m so sorry about not calling but I couldn’t get the Mayor to shut-up.”  Robbie said completely exasperated by the whole situation.

          “What’s going on?”  Sportacus asked.

          “Soon after you called Mayor Meanswell fell out of the tube.  Wondering what he was doing here, I stupidly asked him.  He then proceeded to go into this whole spiel about how he and Bessie are still not talking and that you had yelled at him and on and on.”  Robbie told his friend.

          “So that’s why he didn’t call me.”  Sportacus said.

          “What could you have said to him?”  Robbie asked.

          “I was upset with him because he kept asking me to help him and I wasn’t getting anytime with Stephanie or Joshua, which I still haven’t got.  So I yelled at him and Bessie for behaving like children and told them that they’d be in serious trouble if I had to come back to Town Hall.  It was completely wrong of me but I was at the end of my rope.”  Sportacus explained.

          “Well the Mayor is sitting in my big fuzzy orange chair right now.  So maybe you can clear this up.”  Robbie said. 

          “Why don’t you go and see Amanda?  I’m sure you have a lot to talk about.”  The above average hero suggested.

          “Good idea.  Thanks Sportacus.”  Robbie said.  The two shook hands and the ex-villain climbed up into the tube.  Sportacus walked into the living room to see if he could help the Mayor.    


	8. Chapter 8

Stephanie and Amanda were talking and eating the salad when they heard a knock on the door. 

          “Can you answer that?”  Stephanie asked her friend as she stopped Joshua from flinging his dressing covered salad.  Amanda nodded and ran to the door. 

          When she opened it, Robbie pushed his way inside and grabbed her.  At first, Amanda didn’t know what to do but it was quite obvious what he wanted.  Leaning his tall frame down to her face, Robbie kissed her. 

          Stephanie had finished with Joshua and wiped the French dressing off his face.  Shaking her head at him, the baby giggled.  Then he turned his head and made a face.

          “Ewww.”  He said and pointed.  Stephanie was confused and followed her son’s finger.  What she saw made her smile.

          Robbie and Amanda just stood against the door.  It was quite obvious they were enjoying themselves but Stephanie wasn’t so sure that Joshua should be exposed to the kissing and hand roaming.

          “Mmhmm.”  She cleared her throat.  Robbie and Amanda separated and blushed simultaneously.

          “I guess that takes the phrase ‘kiss and make up’ to a whole new level.”  Stephanie said.

          “Robbie!”  Joshua shouted finally able to see whose face it was.

          “Hey buddy!”  The man came over and poked him.  Joshua poked back and the two played their little game.  Stephanie walked over to Amanda, who was still trying to catch her breath. 

          “Wow!”  Was the only word that escaped her lips.

          “Wow is right.  I don’t mind the kissing thing but I think Joshua maybe scarred for life.”  Stephanie joked.  The two closed the door and walked over to the guys. 

          Joshua poked Robbie’s pocket.  There was something in there and he knew it.  Robbie poked the toddler’s arm side and it made him laugh.  That’s when Stephanie interrupted them.

          “Why was my Uncle over at your house?”

          “He was telling me the whole story.  Apparently he and Bessie still aren’t talking.  By the looks of things, I think she kicked him out.”  Robbie told them as his face turned grim.

          “She kicked him out of his own house?”  Stephanie’s eyes went wide.  Robbie nodded.

          “He came to our place carrying a suitcase.  Sportacus said he would try to talk to him and call you as soon as he could.”  At this Stephanie slumped into the nearest kitchen chair.  Amanda nodded to Robbie and he picked Joshua up and went into the living room.

          “What is wrong with those two?”  Stephanie asked her friend.

          “I don’t know but if anybody can help them its Sportacus.”  Amanda tried to reassure her.

          “He hasn’t been spending anytime at home because he’s been helping my Uncle so much.  It seems if Uncle Milford isn’t happy neither is Sportacus.”  Stephanie said.  Amanda didn’t know what to say to that. 

          Twenty minutes passed and the friends heard the door open.  Sportacus and Mayor Meanswell (carrying a suitcase) entered the apartment.  Robbie saw the look on the above average hero’s face and took the hint.

          “Well I think we’d better leave you guys alone.”  He said.  Amanda took the hint as well and hugged Stephanie.

          “I’ll see you later.”  She said.  Her friend smiled weakly.  Joshua even seemed to be sensing the mood in the room, as he was suddenly silent in his playpen.  Robbie and Amanda held hands and went out the door.


	9. Chapter 9

Sportacus told the Mayor to sit down on the couch with his suitcase.  Then he came over to his wife.  She stood up and wrapped her arms around his waist. 

          “It looks like we won’t be alone tonight.  I’m sorry.”  He whispered to Stephanie.  She only nodded and looked into his Icelandic baby blues.  The above average hero was tired not only physically but emotionally too.

          “I’ll make you up some sports candy while you talk with Uncle Milford.”  Stephanie said keeping her voice low.

          “We’ve talked.  I need to talk to you alone.”  Sportacus continued to whisper.  “Grab some fruit and we’ll go outside.”  Stephanie nodded and let go of him to get some sports candy out of the fridge.  Her husband told Mayor Meanswell to keep an eye on Joshua and promised to be back soon. 

Sportacus and Stephanie sat outside at one of the picnic tables.  It was obvious that things were pretty bad. 

“After I left Town Hall this morning, he and Bessie went home and continued to argue.  Eventually Bessie told him to get out.  So the Mayor grabbed some things that Bessie threw at him and went over to Robbie’s.”  The above average hero explained.

“Why are they arguing and why did Uncle Milford go to Robbie’s?”  Stephanie asked. 

“They’re arguing because Milford forgot their anniversary and afterwards he has been spending all his time at Town Hall.  Supposedly for the upcoming election but no one is running against him anyway.  He went over to Robbie’s because he didn’t want to disturb us.  Frankly, it’s a bit late for that.”  Sportacus said.  A hint of aggravation crept into his voice as he picked up some apple and ate it. 

“So what are we going to do?”  Stephanie wondered.

“I have a mind to do nothing.  It’s not our fault that he forgot their anniversary.  It’s not our fault Bessie can be so demanding.”  Sportacus shocked his wife with this reaction.  “I can’t take this anymore.  I don’t know how my father ever dealt with this.  Constantly fixing other people’s problems and not his own.  Maybe that’s why our family was such a mess.” 

“It was because of your family that you became a hero.  Becoming a hero is what brought you here to LazyTown in the first place.  Its why we met, its why we’re together, and its why we have a wonderful son.”  Stephanie reminded him. 

“Yes and there’s nothing I’d rather have than what I do right now but sometimes I wish it was just you and me and Joshua.”  Sportacus said. 

“That would be great but right now life is a little complicated.”  Stephanie smiled.

“Its always complicated.  But I wouldn’t want anyone else to be living this complex life with than you.”  Sportacus said kissing her hand.  “In the meantime, I think its best to wait until tomorrow.  Hopefully their tempers will have settled by then.”

“I hope you’re right.”  She said.  The two got up and went back inside.  Tomorrow would be a better day.            

          Robbie and Amanda hadn’t gone home.  The two had decided to get something to eat.  It was now close to five-thirty and Robbie was hungry. 

          “I want to apologize for this morning.”  He said as they stood in line at the burger joint. 

          “Well I kind of put you on the spot with my question.”  Amanda told him. 

“Do you want something?”  Robbie asked pointing to the menu.

“No, I had salad over at Stephanie’s.”  Amanda told him.  Robbie smiled and ordered his meal.  They waited in silence for a few moments and got the meal.  Walking out of the place, the two headed back to their house. 

          “I want you to understand that I didn’t want it to seem like I was trying to ignore you.”  He said.  “There has been something I wanted to say but was afraid that every time we talked that I might spill it before it was time.”  Amanda gave him a slightly confused look.  The two sat down on a park bench and Robbie chomped on his burger.

          “Hmm that smells good.”  Amanda said. 

          “You said you weren’t hungry.”  Robbie teased.

          “I changed my mind.”  Amanda smiled.

          “Ok, you can have my French fries.”  Robbie offered.

          “You sure?  I know you’re hungry.”  Amanda wondered.

          “I made some cake the other day.  I’m sure there is some left at home.”  He said reaching into the bag for the fries.  Carefully Robbie slipped a surprise into the box.  Then He handed them over to her and Amanda starting eating them. 

          “Ugh.  Those tasted funny.”  Amanda said tried to spit the couple fries back out but it was too late.  Robbie almost choked on his burger. 

          “Funny how?”  He asked.  A look of concern crossed his face.

          “Like some sort of metal.”  The sentence barely made it out of her mouth when her eyes went wide. 

          “Oh no!”  Robbie exclaimed.  “You swallowed it!”   


	10. Chapter 10

The phone rang and Stephanie picked it up.  She was tired from today and didn’t know how much longer she could take it.

          “Hello?”  The girl mumbled into the phone.

          “Stephanie?  This is Trixie.” 

          “How’s it going?”  Stephanie perked up.

          “Great!  Stingy and I have fixed everything.  He gave away all his stuff and promised we’d never have to do this again.”  Trixie said excitedly. 

          “Oh that’s wonderful!  I’m so happy for you!”  Stephanie was definitely feeling better now.

          “I gotta go but I just wanted you to know what happened.  Thanks again!”  Trixie said.  The two girls hung up and Stephanie had a big smile on her face. 

          “What’s up?”  Sportacus asked.  Her smile made him smile.

          “Trixie and Stingy have worked out their problems.  That’s one down, three to go.”  Stephanie explained.

          “All right!”  Sportacus jumped out of his chair and gave her a hug.

          “Do you want to make it two down, two to go?”  He whispered.

          “With Uncle Milford here?”  Stephanie whispered back.  Sportacus cocked an eyebrow.

          “Its almost 8:08.”  He smiled.  The above average hero couldn’t remember the last time he went to bed at that time but there was nothing wrong with a good habit. 

          “Well I’ll try anything once.”  Stephanie smiled and kissed him on the cheek.  Quickly she scurried to put Joshua to bed.

          Trixie dialed up Amanda and Robbie’s but got no answer.  The couple was a little too distracted to answer the phone. 

          “What are we going to do?”  Amanda asked.

          “The only option would be to wait it out.”  Robbie didn’t know exactly what else to do.

          “But that means…”  Amanda didn’t want to finish that sentence. 

          “Yup.”  Was all Robbie said.

          “But…”  Amanda started.

          “I don’t see any other way around it.”  Robbie told her.

          “Ewww.”  Amanda whined.

          “Lets think about something else.  Like what’s your answer?”  Robbie tried to change the subject.

          “What was the question again?”  Amanda asked.  Robbie rolled his eyes and said,

          “Will you make me the happiest ex-villain on the face of the planet?”

          “Oh that question.  Well I don’t know…”  Amanda smiled and came up to him.  He wasn’t sure what she was thinking. 

          Sportacus knew exactly what he was thinking.  He told Mayor Meanswell that tomorrow was going to be another big day and that he suggested Milford get some sleep.  The Mayor said that sounded good but wasn’t sure where exactly he was going to sleep.  Without hesitation, Sportacus went to the sofa, pulled off the cushions, and grabbed the pullout bed.  Uncle Milford went to the bathroom while the above average hero dug up a spare pillow. 

          Five minutes later, Sportacus sped down the hall.  He shut the bedroom door and practically ripped off his uniform. 

          “What took you so long?”  Stephanie asked.  Her husband didn’t answer as he jumped into the bed beside his already undressed wife.  The above average hero pulled her close.  Tonight would be the first time in a long time they would get to play ‘Lonely Submarine Captain’.


	11. Chapter 11

The girl got real close to him and grabbed his face.  Robbie didn’t pull away as she kissed him.  Soon the two were back at what they had been doing at Stephanie’s.

          “How’s that for an answer?”  Amanda said when they parted a few minutes later.

          “Feels like more.”  Robbie smiled and pulled her back to him.  They kissed again but suddenly Robbie started to laugh and they separated.

          “What’s so funny?”  Amanda asked.

          “How are we going to tell people you swallowed my ring?”  Robbie said continuing to laugh.

          “Around the same time I tell them you had to dig for it!”  Amanda joked. 

          “I have to dig for it?!  No way!”  Robbie smirked. 

          “You expect me your future wife to do it?”  Amanda asked sarcastically.

          “It’s your poop!”  Robbie argued.

          “Yes but I’m not the one who stuck the ring into my food.”  Amanda teased.

          “Maybe you should look at what you’re eating before shoveling it in.”  Robbie pointed out.  The two were soon laughing too hard to say anything.  Finally, they decided it was best not to bring it up at all unless they definitely had to.

          A few hours had passed and Stephanie lay on her back awake in bed.  She wondered why something as simple as forgetting an anniversary had caused such a rift between Uncle Milford and Bessie.

          “I told you not to worry about it until the morning.”  Her husband said grabbing her left side and rolling her onto her right side. 

          “How do you do that?”  Stephanie asked.

          “It’s not hard.  I can tell just by your facial expressions.”  Sportacus said.

          “But your eyes are closed.”  Stephanie reminded him.

          “Then it’s probably a special talent I have.  One which I think our son as picked up as well.”  The above average hero told her.  “Now let’s get some sleep.”  He pulled her close and kissed her forehead, her cheek, and then her lips.

          “Good night.”  Sportacus whispered.  Stephanie was about to ask what he had meant by their son picking up that kind of thing but he put his finger to her lips.  Holding each other close the two soon went back to sleep.

          Mayor Meanswell was not sleeping however.  The pullout sofa wasn’t uncomfortable it was just that he was alone. At least before he had still been sleeping in the same bed as Bessie but now he was completely alone. 

          Sportacus hadn’t been spending time with his family because of him.  That wasn’t right.  Quickly, Milford decided it would be best to fix this himself.  Getting out of bed, the Mayor took off his pajamas and put on some real clothes.  Then he put everything back in his suitcase and quietly left the apartment.

          Once outside the Mayor went down to the LazyTown Inn.  He checked in and went to his room.  However the inn was only a pit stop.  Quickly, he showered, dressed, and wrote a note. 

Milford went down to the desk and asked the concierge to mail it.  The man said he would and wondered what else he could do for the Mayor.  He found it odd that Mayor Meanswell wanted to check out already but didn’t question it.  The inn worker had seen stranger things.  With that, Milford left the inn and headed out into the night.


	12. Chapter 12

**September 2, 2007**

          There was a knock on the door.  Sportacus looked at the alarm clock and rolled his eyes.  It was eight in the morning.  Quietly, so as not to wake Stephanie, he got out of bed and put his sky blue terrycloth bathrobe.  Then walking down the hall, he opened the door.  The above average hero didn’t even realize the pullout sofa bed was empty. 

          “Bessie?”  Sportacus’ left eyebrow rose.

          “Is my husband here?”  She asked.  Sportacus nodded but looking over at the pullout sofa he noticed it was empty.  Quickly, he let her in and raced down the hall.  The bathroom was empty and Joshua was alone in his room.  

          Sportacus didn’t know what was going on but obviously Stephanie needed to be alerted.  Excusing himself, the above average hero ran to the bedroom.  He roused his wife and the couple got dressed as fast as they could.

          Joining Bessie only a few minutes later in the living room, they saw the look on the upset woman’s face.  She handed them the note.

                   “Bessie,

I want to apologize for forgetting our anniversary.  I also want to apologize for my behavior the other day.  You were right.  I have been ignoring you.  There has to be some way for us to get over this bump.  Sadly, I have some business to attend to in FunTown.  I promise to be back in a few days.

Love,

Milford”

          “I pushed him away.”  Bessie said as tears welled up in her eyes.  Stephanie hugged the woman.

          “It’ll be alright.  We’ll sort this out.  ‘There’s always a way.’”  She said.  No one said anything unsure if that was true.  Mayor Meanswell was definitely hiding something from them and without knowing what that was it would be hard.

          Sitting in Mayor Trieshard’s office, Mayor Meanswell listened to his old friend.  The two had been friends for a long time and they did in fact have business but Milford couldn’t help talk about the problems in LazyTown; more specifically his relationship with his wife.

          “Milford you have to make a decision.  What is more important?  From what I understand she made a good point.  There’s no one running against you right?  So why are you living at the office?”  Trevor Trieshard asked.

          “Bessie has always been more important than the job but lately I’m feeling crushed.  She asks for something and I think she’s ordering me around.  I forgot our anniversary because I was just trying to get some space.”  Milford replied. 

          “Well alienating her isn’t the way to go about it.  I’m sure that Sportacus has tried to tell you that.”  Trevor said.

          “Yes and I just wasn’t listening to him or anyone.  I feel absolutely horrible.  But how do I make it up to them?”  He asked.

          “First, I suggest patching things up with your wife.  Your friends are very understanding.”  Mayor Trieshard said.

          “I should probably talk to Stephanie too.  I hope she’s not too upset with me.  I don’t know how I’d handle her and Bessie being mad at me.”  Mayor Meanswell told him.

          “Well let’s finish our business here and you can get back to Bessie as soon as possible.”  Trevor said.                                                                                                                     

“Good idea.  Thanks so much.  Now what about that new legislation do I need to know?”  Milford wondered.


	13. Chapter 13

          “Good land nogoshun, woman!  It stinks in here!”  Robbie shouted from the bathroom as the smell permeated the mask that covered his nose and mouth.

          “The faster you find it the quicker you can flush it!”  Amanda shouted back from the living room.  Robbie grumbled as he was up to his elbows in stuff.  The two had drawn straws and unfortunately he had gotten stuck with the shortest.  Now he wore special rubber gloves that came up over his elbows, a pair of goggles, and a plastic apron that he borrowed from the local plumber. 

          Robbie would’ve called in a professional but neither he nor Amanda wanted anyone else to know what had happened if it could be avoided. 

          “What’s taking so long?”  Amanda asked from down the hall.

          “Uh…”  Robbie stuttered.

          “Its just like eating vegetables you don’t like, the longer it sits there the more time you have to think about it.”  She reminded him.  Deciding that his fiancée was right.  The quicker he got this over with the better. 

          On the other side of town, Stephanie sat with Bessie.  Joshua was taking a nap in the guest room and the house was completely silent.  Sportacus had gone to FunTown to see if he could talk to the Mayor.

          “What if Sportacus can’t get Milford to come home?  What if the hole we’ve dug is just too big to climb out of?  What if…?”  Bessie trailed off as the barrage of questions directed at no one in particular ended.

          “Enough with the ‘what ifs’.  No matter what you and Uncle Milford will fix this.  I shouldn’t have to keep reminding you.  What is going on?  Have you told Sportacus and I the truth?”  Stephanie asked.  Bessie just looked at the girl. 

          “That’s just it.  I don’t know anymore.  I love your Uncle with all my heart and I’m just confused as to what has been going on.  Sometimes he can be such a mystery.”  She said.  Stephanie gave her a funny look.  Uncle Milford was anything but a mystery.  The man wore his emotions out on his sleeves for all of his life.  He didn’t hide anything from anyone up until his strange behavior of the past few weeks. 

          Sportacus had arrived at Mayor Trieshard’s office about twenty minutes ago.  He found the two Mayors discussing legislation and the two men asked him to wait outside.  At first, the above average hero wanted to yell at Milford but he knew that wasn’t going to help the situation.  Making a mental note, he promised himself to talk to Stephanie about his own behavior as of late. 

          “Mayor Meanswell, I hate to interrupt but we need to talk.”  Sportacus said through the door.

          “Give me fifteen more minutes and you can talk to me as much as you want.  This legislation is important for me to understand.”  Milford told him.  The above average hero felt like telling him that his wife was more important but he knew that he had told Stephanie something along those lines quite a few times.

          Ten minutes later, Mayor Meanswell shook his friend, Mayor Trieshard’s hand.  The two friends had made sense of the laws in front of them.

          “Should we make Sportacus wait the five extra minutes?”  Trevor asked.

          “Probably not.  I’ve already kept him from his wife and son too long but nothing says we can’t have any fun.”  Milford smiled.  Then the man shouted,                                                                 

“I GOT IT!”  Robbie exclaimed.  He pulled his glove from inside the toilet bowl.  The ex-villain looked at it.  The beautiful gold ring and small carat diamond were covered in some nasty stuff.  It would take a miracle to be able to clean it.

          Amanda heard the toilet flush and watched him come down the hall carrying a small zipper bag.  Inside the bag was something that looked like her ring.

          “Any suggestions on how to clean it?”  Robbie said doing his best Darth Vader impression.

          “That is a very good question.  Probably before cleaning it off, we should clean you off, Darth.”  Amanda smiled as she pointed to the gloves on his hands.  Looking down, Robbie realized he hadn’t cleaned them off before handling the bag.  Quickly he rushed back to the bathroom.  Cleaning them off in the toilet, he flushed it again.  Then he rinsed the ring and the bag off too.  Another flush ensued. 

          “Wow, a double flusher.”  Amanda teased. 

          “You should talk Miss Stink-o-rama.”  Robbie joked.


	14. Chapter 14

Sportacus and Mayor Meanswell hailed a cab.  The above average hero hadn’t been thinking when he went to get Uncle Milford and just ran to FunTown.

          “I’m surprised you didn’t use your airship.”  The Mayor spoke up in the car. 

          “I was too busy wondering what was going on in your head.  After I read the letter and you said a few days I was afraid what that would do to Bessie.”  Sportacus said.

          “Well I was coming home earlier than I expected anyway.  I thought what I had to do was going to take longer but everything is in place.”  Milford told the above average hero.  Sportacus was about to ask what he meant but the Mayor continued.

          “Sportacus, I want to thank you for everything.  You have been sacrificing time with Stephanie and Joshua to help me.  I know that it hasn’t been easy and I feel awful.  So I’ve decided that that only way to make it up to you is to give you a vacation.” 

          “A vacation?  Remember the last time we tried that?”  Sportacus asked remembering the whole robot dog incident.

          “You didn’t even take time off when your father was killed.  There has to be a way for you to relax.”  Milford said.

          “Well our honeymoon was nice but I just can’t sit still.”  The above average hero told him.

          “Yes but you and Stephanie weren’t gone that long.  Now with Joshua, the three of you deserve some time together without LazyTown’s constant interruptions.  So I’m giving you two weeks off.  Whether you go anywhere or not is up to you.”  Mayor Meanswell said.

          “We were gone for ten days and to be perfectly honest there were times that I worried about everyone back in LazyTown.”  Sportacus said.

          “Even on your honeymoon?”  Milford questioned.  The above average hero nodded.

          “Pretty sad.  Anyway, Iceland’s Prime Minister has been asking me to come back and give a speech for the next class of Icelandic Interpol agents.  It’ll be good to see Dad again too.”  Sportacus told him.  Hard to believe but it had been just over four years since Þórir Scheving’s horrific death on the Mayor’s front step.  Sometimes Milford could swear that someone was watching him when he walked out the door.

          The cab pulled into LazyTown and stopped in front of the Mayor’s house.  Quickly the two men disembarked and Milford paid the cabbie.  Knocking on the door, Sportacus waited for someone to answer it.

          That someone was Stephanie.  She and Bessie had sat in silence since the other woman’s odd comment.  Giving her husband a hug and her Uncle a glare, Stephanie let them in.                 

“Bessie, can I talk to you for a moment alone?”  Milford asked.  His wife nodded and followed him into the living room.  Stephanie took Sportacus down the hall to the guest room since she could hear Joshua playing with his toys. 

          “Bessie, there are so many things I have to say.  I have made it difficult to be around lately and I’m sorry.  I know I’ve apologized a lot but I don’t know what else to do.  You are more important than any election and more important than anything I could ever think of.  I know I forgot our anniversary and I was hoping that you would let me make it up to you.”  Milford said.  Bessie was about to say something but he didn’t let her.

          “While I was in FunTown, I made some arrangements.  The town council is perfectly capable of handling LazyTown and I have filed for a vacation.  Upon its approval, the two of us are going on a cruise in the Bahamas.”  He finished.  Bessie’s mouth hung open.

          “But don’t we have to resolve our problems?”  She asked.

          “That is what the cruise is for.  It will be just you and me.  No one to interrupt us; we can work out our problems without causing anyone else any trouble.  We can talk like two civilized adults and work things out.”  Mr. Meanswell told her.

          “No screaming?”  Mrs. Meanswell asked.

          “No screaming.  Just kissing and making up.”  Milford promised. 

          “Sounds wonderful.”  Bessie smiled as she wrapped her arms around him.  The two sat in each other’s arms until they heard Stephanie and Sportacus shouting.


	15. Chapter 15

Robbie and Amanda were deciding what to do with the wedding ring.  Spraying disinfectant on it might not be a good idea and of course boiling it in hot water wasn’t a real good idea either.

          “No matter how we disinfect it, I don’t know if I’ll ever get the thought of it being, you know…”  Amanda trailed off.

          “In poop?”  Robbie finished.  She nodded. 

          “Well I don’t know how I’m going to get the image of digging around for it out of my head either.”  He continued.

          “I suppose you could say our relationship went from in the crapper to the crap.”  Amanda giggled.  Robbie couldn’t help but laugh.

          “It certainly has soiled our engagement.”  He got out between chuckles.

          “In one end, out the other.”  Amanda said.  Soon the two had forgotten all about the dirty ring and were rolling on the floor in fits of laughter. 

          While they were laughing, Stephanie and Sportacus were talking loudly.  Joshua stared at his parents, completely confused as to what was going on.  They never raised their voices in front of him.  Mayor Meanswell and Bessie rushed into the room.

          “What is going on here?!”  He demanded.  At this the couple stopped fighting and looked at him.  Suddenly they burst out laughing.  The Mayor, Bessie, and Joshua looked at the couple with the strangest looks. 

            “Ef til vill þú had betri segja mig hvaða er að fara á.”* Stephanie said in Icelandic to her husband.

          “Ágætur.  ÉG vilja reyna.”** Sportacus responded.  In English, he answered the Mayor’s question.

          “There’s nothing to worry about.  It may have sounded like we were arguing but we weren’t.  Sometimes Stephanie and I get carried away.” 

          “Really?”  Bessie asked.                                                                                           

“Yes.  We were saying how good it would be to take Joshua to Iceland.  Even if he doesn’t understand that part of the family history yet, it will be nice all the same.”  Stephanie reassured them.  Joshua smiled and said,

          “Home.”  Sportacus cocked his head to the side and raised his right eyebrow.  He gave Stephanie a look and she nodded.

          “Well we are going to leave you two alone.  I’m sure you have a lot to discuss.”  She said hurriedly.  Scooping Joshua out of the playpen and placing him in the stroller, Stephanie smiled and made her way passed her confused Uncle and Bessie. 

          Sportacus stayed behind but only for a minute.  He thanked Mayor Meanswell again for the vacation and quickly followed his wife.  Both Milford and Bessie stared down the hall.  They were completely confused as to the couple’s behavior.

          “Maybe some antibacterial soap and warm water.”  Amanda suggested. 

          “Well its better than nothing.”  Robbie said.

          “Anything would be better than nothing.”  Amanda reminded him.

          “Yes, well lets make sure that we don’t lose it down the drain because I’m not going in after it.”  Robbie smiled.  His fiancée smiled back and they put down a flexible plastic cutting board over the sink drain.  Carefully, Amanda squirted some soap into her hands and Robbie opened the bag and carefully put the ring in her hands.  He turned away and threw the plastic bag out.  Then coming back, Robbie placed his long arms around Amanda.  The two washed the ring cautiously until they were satisfied.  Rinsing the ring and their hands, Amanda looked up to Robbie.  He kissed her forehead and wondered,

          “Why don’t we try this again?”  Kneeling down, Robbie asked,

          “Amanda, will you marry me?”  The girl smiled and said,

          “My answer hasn’t changed.  Yes I will.”  Robbie slipped the ring onto her finger for the first time.  Slowly he stood up and wrapped his arms around her; they kissed.

          “When are we going to tell our friends?”  Amanda asked as they separated.                           

 

* Maybe you had better tell me what is going on.

** All right.  I will try. 


	16. Chapter 16

“Ok, no more joking around.  Does Joshua have some special abilities that I don’t know about?”  Stephanie asked as the family entered their apartment.  Quickly, Sportacus picked up their son, placed him in his swing, and said,

          “Its not that simple.”

          “How can it not be?”  Stephanie asked.

          “Well for one thing there has only been one person in my family to have what he _might_ have.”  The above average hero began to explain.  He was about to say more when the phone rang.  Both were going to ignore it but when Amanda’s voice came over their answering machine, Stephanie leapt up and answered it.  It was seven o’clock and it seemed odd that they hadn’t heard from her friend all day. 

          “Amanda!  What’s up?”  Stephanie asked. 

          “I was wondering if you, Sportacus, and Joshua can come over.”  Her friend said.

          “Right now?”  Stephanie inquired.

          “Yeah if that’s ok.”  Amanda said.

          “Um… hang on a second.”  Stephanie told her.  Setting down the phone, she went over to Sportacus. 

          “Amanda wants us to come over right now.  I still want to talk though.”

          “We will talk.  I need a book from my airship anyway to completely explain everything anyway.  I’ll put Joshua in his stroller again while you talk to her.”  The above average hero said.  Stephanie smiled and went back to the phone.

          “We’ll be over in a few minutes.”  She told Amanda.

          “Great!  I have the side entrance opened so you can bring Joshua’s stroller in.”  The girl said.  The two friends said their good byes and hung up their phones.

          Trixie, Stingy, Pixel and Ziggy were already there when Sportacus, Stephanie, and Joshua arrived.  Everyone greeted each other and wondered what was going on when Amanda quieted them.

          “Robbie and I are glad you came.  But where is Uncle Milford and Bessie?”  Amanda asked. 

          “Here we are.  Sorry we’re late.”  Mayor Meanswell said.

          “Good.  Now we can say it.”  Amanda smiled.

          “Well out with it, woman!”  Trixie said anxiously.  

          “I asked Amanda to marry me and she said yes.”  Robbie spilled.  A cry went up from everyone in the room.  Stephanie, Amanda, Trixie, and Bessie hugged.  Sportacus and Milford shook Robbie’s hand.  Pixel, Ziggy, and Stingy came over and congratulated him.

          “I can’t believe it!”  Trixie exclaimed.

          “What?”  Amanda asked.

          “My two best friends got married before I did.”  The girl smiled.  The friends laughed.

          “Not to worry.  Can I tell you guys a secret?”  Amanda asked.  Her friends nodded.

          “For a little while Robbie and I were wondering if it was meant to be.” 

          “Why?”  Bessie asked.  Amanda went into the whole story.  Not the nasty details of course. 

          “You swallowed the ring?”  Stephanie asked in disbelief.  Amanda nodded.

          “Cool.”  Trixie said.”  Everyone looked at her.

          “Well, you know not that cool.”  Trixie smiled.  The other women laughed and said they understood. 

             Robbie and the guys were talking and Joshua smiled.  Sportacus had picked him up and now he was poking Robbie.

          “Hey buddy.”  The ex-villain smiled and poked him back.

          “Happy.”  The toddler said.

          “Yes, I’m very happy.”  Robbie smiled.  The two continued to poke each other while they talked about the exciting day. 

Around nine o’clock, everyone got together and congratulated the couple again. 

          “Thank you.  Robbie and I will of course keep you all in the loop for the plans and everything.”  Amanda said.  Then the friends departed from the ex-lair and went their own separate ways.

          “Well, soon-to-be Mrs. Rotten what do you say we do now?”  Robbie asked after their friends left.  Amanda kissed him hard.

          “Mhmm, I was thinking somewhere along those lines.”  Robbie said when they parted.

          “We are going to live long happy lives together and you know I couldn’t think of a better person than you, Mr. Rotten.”  Amanda smiled.

          “I don’t know.  What if I become a bad boy again?”  Robbie asked.

          “I promise to straighten you out.”  Amanda said.

          “Really?”  Robbie wondered.

          “That sir, I guarantee.”  Amanda smiled. 

**The End**  


End file.
